Tomoyuki Sugano (8-4, 4.31 ERA) gets the ball for Colorado after his cleanest start of the month — 6 innings, 1 run, 5 strikeouts, zero walks against Pittsburgh on June 20. Taj Bradley (6-3, 4.11 ERA) counters for Minnesota, coming off a 5-inning win in Arizona where he touched 100 MPH on the fastball. The ERAs are close, the forms are similar, and this matchup sets up tighter than the 38-44 vs. 32-49 comparison might suggest. First pitch at 7:10 PM CT.
Minnesota badly needs a reset after the Dodgers swept them in 3 games at Target Field — giving up 2, 12, and 4 runs in a sequence that included a 12-3 humiliation on June 23. The Twins are below .500 at 38-44, and this is the kind of series you have to win if you're still holding any ambitions beyond October spectating. Colorado, at 32-49 and openly positioning as a trade-deadline seller, is in rebuild mode — but they come in having won 3 of their last 5, including a series win over Boston.
The Rockies are a more interesting team than their record implies — a grittier, younger group under manager Warren Schaeffer, already 14 wins ahead of their pace from last year's historically awful campaign. Hunter Goodman has become one of the better power-hitting catchers in baseball with 21 home runs. Cole Carrigg, a 24-year-old promoted in early June, is hitting .271 with 3 homers since his call-up. Ezequiel Tovar anchors the middle infield. None of this makes them a playoff contender, but it means they won't just hand Minnesota a series. The main drag is the pitching staff, which carries the highest team ERA in all of baseball — and that was before Chase Dollander went under the knife for an internal brace procedure on his elbow.
- Day-To-DayBrayan Castillo RP — The Rockies announced Monday that Castillo is dealing with right lat tightness and has been shut down from throwing while undergoing treatment for the injury, TheDNVR.com reports.
- Day-To-DayCase Williams SP — Williams is currently slowed by a stress reaction in his right triceps, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.
- Day-To-DayJared Thomas CF — The Rockies announced Monday that Thomas hasn't been participating in spring training while he recovers from offseason surgery to address a fractured hamate bone in his right wrist, TheDNVR.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILBrenton Doyle CF — Doyle (oblique) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Albuquerque on Tuesday, Kevin Henry of The Denver Gazette reports.
- 10-Day-ILJordan Beck LF — Beck (hamstring) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Albuquerque on Tuesday, Kevin Henry of The Denver Gazette reports.
- 15-Day-ILJaden Hill RP — The Rockies placed Hill on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with right shoulder tendinitis.
- 15-Day-ILTanner Gordon RP — Gordon (hip) is slated to make a rehab start with Triple-A Albuquerque on Wednesday, MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILBlas Castano RP — Castano was called up from Triple-A Albuquerque on Thursday.
- Day-To-DayKaelen Culpepper SS — Culpepper was placed on the 7-day injured list at Triple-A St. Paul on Tuesday with a left hip strain, Aaron Gleeman of AaronGleeman.com reports.
- Day-To-DayRicardo Olivar C — Triple-A St. Paul transferred Olivar from the 7-day injured list to the 60-day IL on June 4 while he recovers from a right knee sprain, Twins writer Brandon Warne reports.
- Day-To-DayJulian Merryweather RP — Merryweather (hamstring) will begin a rehab assignment with the Twins' rookie-level Florida Complex League affiliate Tuesday, Theodore Tollefson of ZoneCoverage.com reports.
- Day-To-DayMatt Canterino SP — Canterino (shoulder) will be with the Twins in big-league spring training but isn't expected to pitch during camp as he continues to recover from shoulder surgery, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
- 10-Day-ILRyan Jeffers C — Jeffers (hand) was spotted taking swings in the batting cage and catching a bullpen session Monday, Theodore Tollefson of ZoneCoverage.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILMick Abel SP — Abel will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow, Aaron Gleeman of AaronGleeman.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILBailey Ober SP — Ober (elbow) is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Tuesday of approximately 40 pitches, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.
- 15-Day-ILCole Sands RP — Sands underwent an MRI on Friday that showed healing in his injured forearm, though inflammation was still present, MLB.com reports.
The injury report on both sides is long, but Colorado's is particularly grim — Dollander (60-day IL, elbow), Kris Bryant (60-day IL, back), Brenton Doyle (oblique, rehab), Jordan Beck (hamstring, rehab), and Welinton Herrera (torn UCL, done for the year) are all unavailable. Minnesota is also short-handed with Pablo Lopez and Bailey Ober still out and Ryan Jeffers sidelined by a hand injury — though Victor Caratini has stepped into the catching role and posted a .906 OPS in that time. The Twins' rotation depth is thin, which makes Bradley's performance tonight genuinely important.
The factor that makes this game interesting is Sugano himself. He's a contact manager and command pitcher, not a swing-and-miss arm, and Minnesota's lineup is capable of working at-bats. But Sugano didn't walk a single batter in his last outing and has lived in the strike zone all season. Bradley's raw stuff — that 100 MPH fastball and a K/BB rate at career-best levels — gives the Twins the edge if lineups are healthy and both guys go 6. Colorado is notably worse away from Coors Field, where the altitude-inflated offense tends to deflate. In a close game, Bradley and the Twins' bullpen options at home make Minnesota the side to be on.